


dead of night

by ollie_oxen_free



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Blood Drinking, Fluff, Horses, Other, Vampire Papyrus, cowboy sf papyrus, cowboys are also very homoerotic, im just tender cowboy loving okay please be nice to me, leave me alone this is super self-indulgent, papyrus is a gentleman vampire, playing with the idea of making the horse a wingman but i feel like that would be too on the nose, this is mostly soft and fluffy, typical vampire behavior, vampires are all very sexy and homoerotic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2019-10-17
Packaged: 2020-12-17 15:44:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21056879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ollie_oxen_free/pseuds/ollie_oxen_free
Summary: The sun goes down, another dreamless nightYou’re right by my sideYou wake me up, you say it’s time to rideIn the dead of night-------Slim's a wanderer, never really bothering to stay in one place for too long. He doesn't really travel alone, though.





	dead of night

He had just gotten the fire started, readying a small bird he’d managed to shoot down, when he felt the air cool behind him. Slim looked over his shoulder with a grin, plucking the last of the feathers off the small fowl, squatting next to the fire.

“Took ya’ long enough,” he said.

Papyrus huffed, the slight breeze that swept through the area making the flames flicker, the light casting shadows on his face. They made him look hollower, for a moment, made the two incisors set into his skull look sharper. Then it was gone, and it was just Papyrus, a glare on his face that was fond and annoyed all at once.

“I apologize for not denying my make and traveling with you during the day where I would most _certainly_ burst into painful flames.”

“All’s forgiven,” he said, just to make Papyrus glare at him again. 

Slim only grinned back, waiting until Papyrus huffed and started to walk around him to turn back to the bird in his hands, using his knife to slice through the flesh, gutting it. The footsteps moving around him stopped and out of the corner of his eye he could see Papyrus standing in front of his horse- Diamond, as Papyrus had named her, referencing the rhombus-shaped patch of white on between her eyes, the only part of her that was anything but black- his hand outstretched. She nuzzled it, sniffing, but when she determined that there weren’t any oats or other treats she huffed, hooving the ground once before moving her head away, going back to picking at the near-bare ground for grass.

He watched Papyrus fawn over her, fingers running over soft ears, her body still wet with sweat from the saddle he’d removed to give her a break, so distracted that he nicked his palm with the knife. He cursed, dropping the bird into the dust alongside the blade, looking at his hand. It wasn’t too deep, not awful, and he planned to just wrap it up and continue on with the night until he noticed that the movement from the other had stopped, standing as still and dead as the thing he was.

Slim glanced over at him, seeing the flash of a red deep in his sockets, eyes fixed on the stream of marrow that was slowly dripping down into the dirt. “Papyrus?” He asked.

The words broke some tension that was in the air, Papyrus shaking his head once and clearing his throat. “Yes?” 

Though he was trying to hide it, Slim didn’t miss the way the other’s eyes kept darting to his hand. He picked pockets for a living. He knew how to track someone’s gaze. 

“You alright?”

Papyrus looked away, off towards where the sun had set earlier in the day. He wrung in hands in front of himself. “I’m fine! It’s just…”

“Just?”

He glanced at him then looked away. “We’ve been traveling for a while and… There’s not much… Food.”

Slim stared at him for a moment before it clicked. He looked at his hand, muttering a dull ‘oh.’ The bleeding had stopped, magic clotting the wound, but the streaks of blood stayed, quickly cooling on the small bones of his hand in stripes of red. 

“It’s not that I haven’t eaten! I’m able to catch animals and such, but there’s just not much there-” He stopped talking suddenly, entire body tense. “I- I apologize. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortab-”

“You can.”

Papyrus stopped again, looking at him in shock. And, damn, Slim was shocked himself, but he’d always been a ‘speak before you think’ kinda guy.

“What?”

He shrugged, playing nonchalance as he wiped his injured hand on his pants, picking up the bird and wiping the worst of the dirt off before sticking it on a skewer, propping it over the fire. “If you’re hungry. I don’t mind.”

Papyrus sighed. “I don’t want you to think that you have to. I’m fine.”

“I know,” he said, watching the fat on the fowl start to sizzle. “I’m offering.”

When he looked up again Papyrus was closer, moving without sound. In the beginning that had startled him every time, led to him pulling his gun more than once, but he knew it now. He knew Papyrus.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Papyrus muttered, staring down at him where he was sitting in the dirt. Slowly, he started to move down too until he was sitting just beside him. 

“You won’t,” Slim assured. And he knew it, too. There weren’t many people he could trust, living life like he did, but Papyrus- who watched his back while he slept and traveled with him, who shared stories and laughs and drinks… He’d be fine.

Suddenly he became aware of how close the other was, sitting beside him now, gaze intense, and he cleared his throat with a chuckle. “So, uh, how do ya’ need me?” Then, realizing the innuendo, “wait, I meant-”

“This is fine,” Papyrus said. His hand came up to rest on his shoulder, thumbing the loose bandana still tied there. “If you’re still okay?”

He fought to keep the breathiness from his voice, soul thrumming faster in anxiety. He took a deep breath that he didn't need to still it. “Yeah. M’good.”

Papyrus leaned into him and he felt cool air on the bones of his neck before two sharp pricks. It quickly faded into warmth. He was surprised it didn’t hurt, only the pressure on his neck from his teeth and the heat that started there, working over his bones until he felt like he was floating. He wasn’t sure how long Papyrus had been feeding from him. He wasn’t sure of anything anymore, just the pressure at his neck and the arms he could feel around him, the only thing that was keeping him upright.

All too soon the warmth stopped and he felt Papyrus pull away, something soft and smooth rolling over the bite before he leaned back. Slim blinked after him, feeling slow, and even though Papyrus seemed concerned for a moment as he looked him over, he relaxed when Slim gave him a shaky grin, making an 'ok' with his hand.

“Thank you,” he said, his arm still wrapped around Slim’s back. He was sturdy, like a rock. Slim leaned further into the hold.

“‘Ey, no probl’m.” His voice was slightly slurred and he felt tired and heavy. 

The other shifted and he made a noise of protest, jostled, but it went away when the smell of food hit his nose. The bird was done cooking. Papyrus pulled off a piece of the flesh and held it to his mouth. Slim hesitated but opened his mouth when Papyrus prompted him further, chewing slowly.

“You should have your strength back by morning,” Papyrus said, holding another piece to his mouth.

“M’kay,” he slurred. He felt drunk, slightly, though the feeling wasn’t as harsh, just a wave of warmth. Another piece of food. He took it, feeling drowsy.

When he was done eating, only a few small bones left, Papyrus tossed the remains into the smoldering coals, moving him to lay down on his lap. “You can sleep,” he said, looking down at Slim. His eyelights were there, two soft, white pinpricks. “I’ll keep watch and wake you before morning.”

“Alright.” He closed his eyes slowly, Papyrus shifting to get comfortable before stilling once more, a sturdy rock he could rest his head on. “Okay,” he said before he drifted off, knowing Papyrus would keep him safe.

* * *

True to his word, Papyrus gently shook him awake the next morning. Slim sat up with a groan, feeling groggier than usual, but when he noticed Papyrus’s concerned gaze he gave him a thumbs up. Groggy and stiff, slightly, his neck protesting as he rolled it on his shoulders, the bones popping as he shifted. Slim reached a hand up, rubbing the spot on his neck that was the most sore- not painful, more like a bruise- feeling two small divots in the bone. 

“Damn,” he said, more to himself than anyone, “you got some sharp teeth.”

Papyrus winced and stood, brushing the dust from his clothes. “I’m… sorry. About that.”

Slim stood with a another groan, joints creaking in protest, stretching his arms above his head before letting them drop to his sides. “S’fine. I offered.” A pause. “It wasn’t awful, either.”

The smile the other gave him was brief, but genuine. “I’m glad to hear that.”

There was something there, maybe, the two of them standing and staring at one another like idiots, but the sun was starting to come up and Slim didn’t feel like poking that with a stick just yet, so he just dug his hat from the saddle bags and put it on his head, tipping the brim. “S’pose I’ll see you tonight?”

“Of course!” Papyrus looked away from him, out over the horizon. “I’m fairly certain there’s a town coming up somewhere. Maybe a day or two's travel?”

Slim bent down, picking up the saddle blanket and brushing off any dust and debris before setting it on his horse. She huffed out a sigh, ears twitching. “Oh, hush, you,” he muttered to her. Then, louder to Papyrus, “But only a few hours for you, hm?”

Papyrus shrugged. “One of the benefits to being a vampire.”

Slim snorted. “Speaking of,” he said, picking up the saddle from the ground with a grunt and throwing it onto the blanket, “will I get any superpowers from that? Super strength? Good looks?”

He was busy fiddling with the straps, buckling the saddle onto her and pulling it tight, but he could practically hear the roll of eyes in Papyrus’s voice. “That’s not how it works.”

“That’s a damn shame.” He pulled the bridle from one of the bags on the saddle, patting Diamond on her hindquarters as he moved in front of her. “I’m sure this bastard would love to have me carry her for a change.”

Papyrus laughed, soft. Slim may have said something as he slipped the bit into the horse’s mouth, pulling the straps over her ears, but the sudden influx of pink-orange on the horizon cut their time short. Papyrus sighed, as he always did, and gave him a small wave. By the time Slim blinked he was gone, leaving only a disturbance of dirt that showed he was even there to begin with. 

Diamond huffed and hoofed the ground, head bobbing up and down. Slim rolled his sockets and grabbed the reins, stilling her. “Oh, quiet down, now. You’ve seen this a thousand times.”

She stomped once more before stilling. He moved away from her for a moment, kicking dirt over the smoldering coals and ensuring he'd left nothing behind before giving a sharp nod, more to himself than anyone. Slim looked at the rising sun, the crest of light barely over the horizon, before he swung onto the saddle, taking the reins and giving a quick click with his mouth. She started walking, then trotting, the gait smooth. Slim pulled his bandana over his mouth and nose to keep the dust out, hands resting on the horn of the saddle afterwards. 

The rocking motion was rhythmic, steady, and he let his mind wander. The bruise on his neck, pressure on his side, a hand smoothing over his skull. Briefly, he was grateful for the cloth tied around his mouth.

He could pretend the heat creeping up his face was from the covering, and the rising sun, and nothing else.

**Author's Note:**

> come check me out on [tumblr](https://ollie-oxen-free.tumblr.com/) where i write other things like this and tell funney jokes


End file.
